American action film directed by David Koepp and written by Koepp and John Kamps. The film stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Michael Shannon, Dania Ramirez and Jamie Chung. Set around a bicycle messenger who is chased around New York City by a dirty cop who wants an envelope

the messenger has, it is scheduled for release on August 24, 2012 by Columbia Pictures.

Synopsis:

The film centers on a New York City bicycle messenger (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) who picks up an envelope from Columbia University. A dirty cop (Michael Shannon), desperate to get his hands on the envelope, chases the bicycle messenger around the city.

Cast:

Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Wilee, a New York City bicycle messenger

Michael Shannon as Bobby, a dirty cop

Aaron Tveit as Kyle

Jamie Chung as Nima

Dania Ramirez as Vanessa, a bicycle messenger

Aasif Mandvi as Raj

Production

Film crew preparing to shoot a scene at the intersection of 5th Avenue and West 34th Street (beneath the Empire State Building)

Principal photography began in mid-July 2010 in New York City. Gordon-Levitt was injured during filming on August 1, 2010, when he was cycling too fast and hit the back of a taxi. The impact sent Gordon-Levitt flying into the rear windscreen of the taxi, slashing his arm which required 31 stitches.

Lawsuit and charges of copyright infringement

In 2011, a lawsuit claiming copyright infringement was filed by author Joe Quirk, claiming Premium Rush was in fact based on Quirk's screenplay from his 1998 novel The Ultimate Rush. The suit laid out many plot, character name, and scene similarities to Quirk's original screenplay.